Along the Kings River southeast of Fresno, California, almost 1,000 cats and kittens and 30 dogs live out their lives running free on 12 acres of fenced-in land. At this incredible sanctuary called The Cat House on the Kings, the animals — all up for adoption except for 50 permanent residents — also have run of their very own 4200 square-foot, five-bedroom house and another house they share with the sanctuary's founder. "It makes your heart feel good," says Cat House founder Lynea Lattanzio.

Lattanzio and a staff of 23 oversee their charges, most from over-full shelters. Those that are ill they nurse back to health in an on-site ICU. Lattanzio has also figured out a way to help the cats deemed unadoptable at shelters — for every one of these she takes in, the shelter must take five of her adoptable cats and find them homes.

"She's a godsend for the ones she takes in, that's for sure," says Stephen Goode of the Fresno SPCA, which gets many more animals than it can support. "Lynea and her people come here two to three times a week to try to save them." At the other end of the resident population, pampered felines have arrived from as far away as Saudi Arabia and Hong Kong to live out lives paid for by their owners.

Since its founding some two decades ago, The Cat House on the Kings has saved over 20,000 cats and 4,000 dogs. Lattanzio originally owned six acres where the cats roamed free. Several years ago, when her next door neighbors went into foreclosure, she bought their six acre property, which had two pre-fab homes on it. Lattanzio first lived in the larger home, then moved to the smaller one, and is now moving out again to dedicate the house solely to the cats.

"When I moved out of the big house, I thought I will have a life of peace," she says, laughing. "You can take the woman out of the shelter but you can’t take the shelter out of the woman."

Inspired by this amazing place, Freekibble.com is donating 7,000 meals of Halo Spot's Stew to Cat House every month, knowing the donation is going to such great use! “I think Cat House on the Kings does amazing work by providing all these cats with such a great quality of life” says Mimi Ausland, founder of Freekibble.

(check out this amazing You Tube video:)

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Ellen's Gift

“You are what you eat” is true for animals as well as for us. Read the ingredients. Can you identify them? Are there inferior by-products, “meals” or chemicals?